A Tale of Two Town Pastors - Diocese of Salisbury
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A Tale of Two Town Pastors
Neil Biles has just picked up a Community Award
for his work as Weymouth’s Community
Chaplain and he is delighted, especially as he is
following in some pretty big footsteps:
“My faith, my beliefs and my role as community
chaplain are based on the journey of Jesus, who
came to serve people.”
Neil’s job description is just as big an ask.
It tasks him with bringing Good News to
Weymouth Town Centre by serving the local
community through the opening of St Mary’s
Church Centre as a beacon of light in the town
for all to enter.
“St Mary’s District covers the retail hub of the
town, but there are also several flats and bedsits
including new blocks of private flats. We have a
mix of young adults and the elderly as well as
those who work here.
“More ward residents claim disability benefit -
and there is higher unemployment - than in the
rest of the borough.
“The nature of the area means there is a floating population of seasonal employees and a large influx of
holidaymakers. Despite a boost from the Olympics in 2012, the town centre now has many empty shops.
“Weymouth & Portland Borough Council has, however, recently proposed a Masterplan for Town Centre
Development which would considerably improve this area. In this, the overall vision for the Town Centre is
for it “to be a place of unique character and distinctiveness, which builds on its maritime heritage and
family friendly offer, to provide a vibrant mix of shopping, cultural and leisure activities, supported by
thriving businesses, tourism, commercial and cultural sectors.”
“The objectives of the Masterplan include achieving a diverse, thriving and attractive town centre which is
vibrant around the clock, full of activity as a place to live, work, shop, spend leisure time and enjoy the
scenic coastal location. Developments at the Station Gateway, along Commercial Road, at the Ferry
peninsula, and at Lodmoor are within the Parish, and the Harbourside development is close. All are
intended to improve the public realm and provide some residential development within St. Mary’s District.
“The local congregation has great enthusiasm and a big heart for the future of St Mary’s Church, and
continues to pray regularly for its central involvement and place in the town. They recognise that, as an
elderly congregation, they have limited resources themselves but continue to pray and support a new
vision for the future with St Mary’s at the heart of the Weymouth town.
“As a Weymouth boy, I use to attend St Mary’s Church on a regular basis, as I attended St Mary’s School
that used to exist on the current Library Site. I have had some involvement with St Mary’s over the years
and heard many concerns about its future. It was not until I became Chair of the Parish Profile
Development Group that I realised that I personally had a bigger interest in the Church and recognised that
there is a wonderful group of praying, serving people who have a desire to see the Church used but needed
support from others. I believe that God is calling me to support the future.
“I felt that God had called me back to Weymouth.”
Neil was Operational Director for Church Army until 6 years ago, when he felt called:
“Imagine a small group of ordinary people, living and working closely to one another, sharing their lives and
resources. They meet frequently to pray, to eat, to apply the Scriptures to their lives, to relate to God
together and support and love one another.
“They discover what God is already doing and join in by immersing themselves in the surrounding
community, building relationships, meeting practical needs by working for social change, and finding
innovative ways to communicate the good news of Jesus.
“People come to faith, their lives changed by the power of the Holy Spirit and baptised into the community,
the Christian Faith. In turn, the atmosphere in the wider community lifts. New believers are nurtured and
taught the ways of Jesus. They become part of the newly formed Christian community and begin to
introduce friends and neighbours to Jesus. As new people are added, the nature of the community changes
and develops.”
That was Neil’s vision, but how could he implement it?
“I considered ordained ministry but I wanted more flexibility. Originally I thought I would work four days a
week and give the rest of my time to God, but he provided the money, through a trust, to fund me, to allow
me to work for him full time.”
Neil’s Chaplaincy role sees him dividing his time between St Mary’s and St Ebenezer’s Evangelical Church in
the town.
“My focus is across a lot of
projects and across the week, I
flow from one thing to another.
Those things include a Monday
Brunch Club that feeds 30-odd,
Tuesday Prayers that “light the
town centre church up like a
disco”, according to one curious
passer-by, a Wednesday Coffee,
and a Thursday Lunch that
between them bring around 50
people to St Ebenezer’s.
Then there is the ‘Christians In
Work Breakfast’ that sees Neil
using his catering skills again,
cooking an early town centre breakfast that allows local Christians to eat, pray and talk together before
work.
“We see about 50/50 attendance between church and non.”
Neil has many hats - he is Benefice, PCC and Deanery Lay Chair - and he says this allows him to garner help
from lots of different places.
“The local congregation has great enthusiasm and a big heart for the future. This enthusiasm relates also to
the Salisbury’s Diocese vision for our communities by ‘Renewing our Hope - Praying and Serving with the
outcome of Growth.’
But the key to his work?
“Double listening. Listen to God and listen to the context, but then add a third: what are your gifts and
talents and how can you use them?”
“My ethos is hospitality, I offer the welcome ‘Come to the table, come to eat, come to have fellowship and
by the way, you can meet Jesus if you want to.’”
Down the road in Poole, John and Anne
Ainsworth spend every Saturday afternoon
looking for trouble in the town centre - not
because they want to join in, but because they
want to help.
John and Anne are part of the Poole Street
Pastors team. Their Saturday afternoon ministry
involves wearing hi-viz jackets and caps, and
offering a calming, approachable presence at
key ‘trouble spots’ such as the Bus Station and
High Street. Anne says,
“We do this at the request of the Police,
because there is a great need for positive
support especially among the youth, the
homeless and elderly.
“Sometimes we find someone in pain who
needs a listening ear and we offer prayer.
“Other times we do practical deeds such as
giving gloves in cold weather, phone for a taxi
when someone is ill, we have picked up a
motorbike rider after a fall and stayed with him till he had recovered enough to go home.
“It’s an opportunity to open conversations about God. One gentleman asked us to have a word with ‘The
Guvnor’ - God - to sort out the mess in our Government!
“The homeless are reassured of finding emergency accommodation and hot meals, local charities are
promoted where possible, and connections are made between the public, Safer Communities and
neighbourhood police when needed.
“Our aim is to help unite the town of Poole in Jesus’ love, allowing the opportunity for all to make the best
of life. Being the face of Churches Together, we believe, encourages individuals in the community to live
peacefully and to get to know God. We love any opportunity to talk about Jesus but we don’t force it, God
will use whatever we say in Jesus’ Name for His good purpose.”You can also read
